Storm Season

ISSUE: Hurricane season doesn't really end.

The calendar tells us that today is the official end of hurricane season. As Floridians have found out, the calendar doesn't tell the whole story when it comes to storms.

Hurricanes, hurricane preparations, hurricane clean-up, etc., affect Floridians year-round, and this year will be no exception even with the thankfully quiet storm season.

State lawmakers announced Wednesday they will have a special session in January to address the insurance crisis. With homeowners statewide facing startling rate increases, and reinsurance for insurers still a huge issue, insurance reform is something that cannot wait until the regular legislative session in the spring.

The spring, of course, is when Floridians will have time to calmly make preparations for the actual storm season -- making sure screens and roofs are in shape, getting shutters if needed, figuring out what supplies must be purchased, etc. Those who have lived through storms here know that the last minute is no time to make those preparations, unless you want to be one of those people on TV complaining about the hours-long waits to get water or in line at Home Depot.

Then, during the summer, when the peak of hurricane season is actually upon us, we go about our lives and hope we get lucky. Some residents used to sarcastically whine about a slow hurricane season, complaining how they made all the preparations and purchases for naught, and how they missed the excitement.

Most people know that's ridiculous thinking. Supposedly a beneficial one-two punch from an El NiM-qo and a weak Bermuda high made our just-completed hurricane season the most uneventful in several years, even if it's just a temporary pause. Nobody is whining about the lack of excitement.